Scotty Dale Moss

A man charged with reckless murder and first-degree assault in connection with a fatal wreck told officers he drank a pint of Fireball cinnamon whisky before getting behind the wheel, according to a crash report released recently by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

The crash occurred around 8:40 p.m. Oct. 2 near the intersection of Zehner and Quinn roads, less than half a mile from 38-year-old Scotty Dale Moss’s listed residence. Moss was traveling south, toward the address, when he crossed the center line and collided head-on with a northbound vehicle, according to the report.

An adult male passenger in Moss’ vehicle was not injured, but 37-year-old Lloyd Jason Crawford Reed was killed and a female teenager in Reed’s vehicle had to be flown to Huntsville Hospital via MedFlight.

Limestone County Coroner Mike West told The News Courier Reed was wearing his seat belt but most of the impact from the crash was to the driver’s side door of the 1984 Chevrolet El Camino he was driving. Reed was pronounced dead at the scene from blunt-force trauma.

In an incident narrative, Alabama State Troopers said Moss admitted he was distracted and had looked away from the road prior to the impact. Troopers estimated his speed was 60 mph, whereas Reed was obeying the 45-mph speed limit.

“(Moss) said he had been drinking and admitted to drinking a pint of Fireball. The driver had a strong odor of alcohol coming from his breath,” the narrative reads, adding a blood sample was taken at an area hospital and toxicology results were pending at the time.

The report said Moss was driving on a suspended license in a 2005 GMC Envoy registered to a Missoula, Montana, woman. The News Courier received a tip the Envoy had been left at a local mechanic’s shop and the vehicle owner was unaware of Moss having possession of the vehicle, but The News Courier has not been able to independently verify these claims.

Records show Moss was free on bond awaiting trial on a charge of chemical endangerment of a child when the wreck occurred. A complaint filed in June claimed Moss allowed a child residing with him to be exposed to cocaine.

Moss was arrested and released on bond July 10, 2017, with trial originally set for April 11 of this year. It was then rescheduled for Aug. 13 and Nov. 5 before being scheduled for its current date of Feb. 4, 2019. No date has been set for the murder or assault charge.

Moss remains in the Limestone County Jail with bail set at $75,000.